The Colorado Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) and Safety K12 Scholars Program will be a national and regional resource for research and training in health care and CER, and the hub for CER in the Rocky Mountain Region. We will develop a new K12 program in CER and Safety education, systematically assess mentorship capacity, and continuously monitor our progress as part of a longitudinal evaluation infrastructure to improve the CER workforce and leadership pools of the future. We will achieve this goal by leveraging expertise in methods, measurement, and clinical science and by harnessing our novel approaches to CER through large-scale research networks in integrated (HMORN/Kaiser Permanente Colorado) and in nonintegrated systems of care (AHRQ-supported DARTNet/PBRN), relying on organizational, human capital, and data resources. We will integrate the Colorado CER K12 program into the existing Colorado Clinical Translational Sciences Institute K12 program. In doing so, we will transform the model of purely didactic training for individual researchers into a holistic culture that nurtures career development of collaborative, multidisciplinary teams of investigators. The Colorado CER Scholars Program will build on strengths in research and training in mental health, cardiovascular outcomes, and methods and measurement. We will address career development needs of both CER K12 Scholars and their Mentors. The CER K12 will provide foundations for collaborations that will lead to new research with broad implications for public health, and will support a well-equipped workforce and a national CER leadership pool. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The Colorado Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) and Safety K12 Scholars Program will be a national and regional resource for research and training in health care and CER. We will develop a new K12 program in CER and Safety education, systematically assess mentorship capacity, and continuously monitor our progress as part of a longitudinal evaluation infrastructure to improve the CER workforce and leadership pools of the future.